


Xanth: Warlock of Myrkul

by MrsAlderaan



Series: The Anti-Heroes of Green Nest [1]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-20
Updated: 2017-06-20
Packaged: 2018-11-16 15:09:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11255463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsAlderaan/pseuds/MrsAlderaan
Summary: Xanth did not start this life as he is now. This is the story that leads him to be with the ragtag group of adventurer's known as the Anti-Heroes of Green Nest





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My group of friends did the Hoard of the Dragon Queen as one of our first campaigns together. This series is a combination of all of our stories. This story is a re-post of my friend, Senji95's story "The Story of Xanth", which was originally posted on deviantart.

An ear shattering shriek filled the air in the decrepit catacombs, followed by a deafening silence. Finally, the Lich who had been terrorizing the Northern reaches of Icewind Dale in Faerun had been vanquished, leaving behind only small remains of itself as it left this world. But, where one story ends, another finds its beginning... 

The soul of the defeated lich only had one destination, straight into the bowels of hell to face punishment for all eternity. As the soul arrived in the fiery pits, it knew all too well that there would be no escape from its fate. In life, he had little care for the safety and lives of those around him, and, in the underworld, it was only amplified. He had spent years destroying lives to further his growth and power, and, now, he must pay for his sins. 

A commanding voice called forth, followed by a hearty laugh; its breath reeking of sulfur and brimstone. "And, so, he finally arrives. Tell me, Xanth, for how long did you hope to escape eternal damnation? All of your wrongdoings were bound to catch up with you."

Xanth wanted to yell, swear and assault the figure all at the same time, but he was in no position to. His power was stripped away from him, and he was now at the mercy of his demonic captors. A large hand picked the small soul off the ground, Xanth offering no resistance as the hand closed down upon him, beginning what would seem like the next centuries worth of time to the now powerless soul. Hours turned into days, days into months, and months into years, all the while Xanth's soul would be tortured to make him pay for his sins and crimes against the mortal realm. 

One fateful day, he was approached by a figure so hellish that it scarred his mind as he simply tried to fathom the power of what was before him. As his consciousness was filled with tormented screams of those so unlucky to share his fate; it was suddenly invaded by a powerful presence, on that silenced all the other voices. Though the lips of the man in front of him never moved, he could tell that the voice he heard with its own. The figure leaned down, and, with a touch, his mark would be forever burned upon Xanth's soul. The voice in his mind talked as if it was offering him a choice, but, when the option is to do as you are told or face endless torture, your options start to seem limited. The voice made it clear what it wanted, a servant, another who would fall in line and take a knee when their lord was in their presence. A soul who he could use to do his bidding and enforce his will upon any who would defy him. Xanth didn't only see this as a way to escape torture, but as a way to further his power, and, in an instant, his old hunger had returned. With just a thought, the deal was struck; his soul was released from its torment, and, around it, a new body took form. 

This body, however, was not what it once was. This was not Xanth's body. He had become shorter, lighter, and... younger? A smirk grew on the figure as Xanth realized what he had become. The being in front of him had reduced him into nothing more than a child, a small and sickly child. His blood ran hot for the first time in years, but, before he had time to react, he was handed a small scroll. In a flash, he disappered.

In the mortal realm, time did not stand still. Many years had passed since Xanth last walked among man. A bright flash filled the sky, and, in the woods, the summoning was complete. Suddenly, Xanth found himself not face to face with the terrifying figure he had been looking at, but, instead, at that of a human wizard. The wizard who was, at first, in shock that his spell had worked, was now facing sadness. This was not the power he had aimed to summon; something must have gone wrong. However, before he managed to even begin the ritual to send Xanth back to whence he came, he could feel a burning pain in his abdomen. 

As he looked down, he saw the child he had summoned stabbing over and over into his chest with a large flaming dagger. The pain spread through him like a wildfire, and, in just a moment, his heart was finally pierced by the fiery tip of the weapon. This was not the first, nor the last time Xanth would take a life, but, this time, there was a feeling... completely new to him.

His glee was almost instantly replaced by hunger the likes of which he had never known. He didn't care for the food stocks the wizard had, he wanted his flesh. At first, Xanth was repulsed by the mere thought, but it did not take long for him to cave in and devour most of the body that had been left in front of him. As he finished his meal, he looked around the tower he was in, taking many valuables from the shelves. He took the wizard's robes and put them on to serve as his clothing, but, while taking from the man, he found an item that stood out. He approached a glass container that held within a chain necklace, a blood red diamond hanging from it. 

As another bolt of lightning flashed through the sky, followed by the cracking of thunder, Xanth made his way down the tower and out the front. With a few more crackles from the thunder, rain drops began to fall, slowly at first. With a sigh and a look at the paper he was handed before his summoning, he pulled the hood of the robes above his head and set out into the unknown area he had found himself in.


	2. Xanth's Story: Part 2

As he wandered the woods, many thoughts raced through his mind. Where am I? What am I? Why am I here? All of these questions, yet he knew none of the answers.

"Achoo!" The gentle sound of a child's sneeze filled the air, and Xanth's anger began to boil.

How dare they? That wasn't his voice! This was not his body. Did those beasts see this as some sort of joke? In his past life, he was a force to be reckoned with. A powerful Lich, and before that... He had never felt this weak- even when he was a child, he had his strengths. This form, however, offered little to no strengths. How do they expect me to do anything like this? Every thought only added fuel to the fire in his heart when he realized, he hadn't the first idea of what he was even doing here. Wherever 'here' was. Either way, he needed to find somewhere he deemed safe to stay. He had wandered what had felt like miles from the tower he was summoned to, and was slowly becoming tired. This form was going to take some time to get used to. As he looked around for shelter, something caught his eyes, the entrance to a cave. Not the safest place to hid, but, at this point, it was better than nothing. He quickly made his way to the opening of the cave, moving to find a spot in the dark space. Xanth decided that the back of the cave would be safest, slumping down in the darkness to rest and regain his strength.

'Why have I become so powerless?' He thought, mind racing, as he slowly glanced to his hand, opening and closing it slowly. After a short time, he drifted into unconsciousness, but it only felt like seconds before he began to wake to the feeling of light breathing on his face. 

Xanth carefully opened an eye to get a view of what was in front of him when he found himself face to face with a wolf that had just found its next meal. As concern spread over Xanth's face, the wolf began to bear its fangs. In a split second, he reached for something, grabbing a rock and smashing the fanged beast across its snarling maw before clambering to escape. As he tried to crawl past the beat, he felt something pierce his leg, and he let out a pained scream. The wolf had quickly recovered from its injury, and had bitten deeply into the muscle of Xanth's leg. Blood began to seep from the wound, and Xanth laughed mirthlessly. 

"It's over. I was brought back as a joke, not even a day and this is how I end? Pathetic." The thought crept through his mind, but it was pushed aside by the rage he held deep in his heart. As he looked back at the beast, his eyes were drawn quickly from the fangs buried in his legs to a scroll on his hip. He didn't remember placing it there, but it looked familiar. He reached to grab it, seeing it as a possible path of salvation, and, as he opened it to read the words, it seemed as if time had stood still. All the pain he felt faded and reality seemed to fade away, but it was quickly invaded by a familiar sight. 

Again, the figure stood in front of him, the same one that had marked him, speaking in that familiar voice. This time, Xanth could see the figure better, making out the finer details of the man he saw. A soft chuckle began to echo through Xanth's mind as the man's voice invaded it yet again. "Sorry to cut our last conversation short. These mortal men, so impatient. But, I see that you made the right choice. Good, it spared me from having to send for you. That wouldn't have been fun for either of us." The figure in front of him grinned lightly, flashing a few sharp teeth to the now young boy. "Let's make this official then, shall we?"

Xanth's mind rushed with many thoughts yet again. What he felt now made his earlier confusion feel like nothing, but, suddenly, all of his thoughts were silenced by the being as it spoke again. "I will make this decision easy for you, try not to take too long to ponder your answer." The words on the scroll he had opened slowly shifted from some infernal language to plain common. A needle formed in Xanth's free hand as the voice explained. "Right now, you feel weak. That can all change with this simple agreement. At one price, nothing of yours that isn't already going to be mine. If you deny me I will understand. I will leave you to your fate with that wolf and I will see you again in hell, or, perhaps, you will choose to live. Another chance to obtain the powers you desire. Simply pierce your thumb with my needle, and press it to the contract and I can save you from your current fate. We don't have much time before your friend makes you a plaything, so, for your sake, i suggest you hurry." 

And, like that, the voice went silent, giving Xanth a moment to think through his next actions. He didn't even need to read the contract to know what he would be signing. A soul and endless servitude for a chance at a second life. He knew if he were to deny that he would surely be taken back to hell, and, with that knowledge, there was truly only one option. He quickly pierced his skin with the needle and pressed his bleeding thumb to the paper, signing away his humanity yet again for another chance. In an instant, everything came back and he was greeted by a sharp pain in his leg, but, this time, he felt different, stronger. He twisted and leaned over to the wolf, placing both of his hands on its head as a wicked smile flashed across his face. Suddenly, a loud yelp was let out from the creature as the entire cave flashed bright with fire, and, just as fast as it happened, it became dark again. Xanth took a few slow and pained breaths as looked upon what he had done. The walls of the cave were lined with scorch marks, the being that had bitten into him was nowhere to be found, and the only remnant was the smell of burnt fur in the air. He ripped off pieces of his robes and made a crude wrapping for his wounds and laid back to relax again, and to familiarize himself with his newfound power.

What felt like hours passed in seconds, his body refreshed and feeling oddly revitalized; he got up and made his way out of the cave he was in before a voice rung in the back of his head. "Now that you have signed the contract, you are mine to command." 

As if he didn't know what he had signed up for. "Head south from here, there you will find a small town. I will contact you once you have arrived, your first job awaits you there." 

The voice left his mind as quickly as it came and he was once again left to just his thoughts. With newfound vigor he began making his way South to his new destination. Many of his questions faded to the back of his mind as he traveled. Nothing mattered to him in these moments. All he desired was power and what he had now was but a fraction of what he once had at his disposal. Nights turned to day as he traveled but his hunger didn't stop him. Not only did it not stop him, it seemed rather tame in comparison to what he recalled a human needing. It was only on the seventh day that his hunger even began to take place, but, even then, it was not bad enough to stop him. He pushed on until the tenth day of travel before his hunger seemed like too much, but, by then, he had finally arrived in a small town he had never been to before in any of his lives. Finding food was not hard, it seemed that any meat could sate his hunger if it was bad enough. Perhaps that was for the best, needing to murder to eat would be rather risky if he needed to at all times. As he sat in the town square and finished his meal a voice rang in his head once more.

"Now then, let's get started, shall we?"


End file.
